Marketing Ideas for Small Business – Lead a Tribe

Mass marketing is dead.

And that’s great news.

It used to be that you could take an average idea, spend a bunch on advertising and you could succeed.  You could sell your books, sign new clients, and build a business.  It took a lot of money.  But if you had the cash it was easy.

That meant money could buy influence and power.

Thankfully, because of the digital revolution and the new economy, that’s changing.  Influence and power is being shifted to people that are connectors.  People that:

• Have a great idea,
• Create a vision around it,
• Enlist others, and
• Connect the people that buy into the story.

It’s about finding and leading a tribe.

Seth Godin is a major influence of mine. If you looking for marketing ideas for small business, he’s your guy.  He defines a tribe as any group of people who are connected to one another, a leader, and/or an idea.

Being a part of a tribe helps people connect, it helps them find each other, it gives them a story and something to talk about.  What makes tribes so influential is that they care about something…a cause, a product, a mission.

Today marketing is not trying to convince others.  It’s leading people and helping them get what they already want.

When you become trusted because you care, it’s likely the revenue will take care of itself.  If you can be clear about your audience, find them, and then lead them by helping them get what they want, you will succeed.

It used to be that the ones that had all the answers were the ones with all the power.

With the internet we all have access to answers.  The people and brands of influence in this age are the connectors.  Take Google for example.  All they do is connect people with information and they practically run the world.  (Kidding.)

(Kind of.)

The point is, anyone who wants to make a difference now has the tools literally at their fingertips.  The internet, specifically social media, has eliminated barriers of geography, cost, and time making it easier to form tribes. The social web, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Blogs, etc, have never made it easier to organize people around a common cause or purpose.

Social media is an action.  Not a site.  It’s the ability to have conversations online with others, whether it’s your market, customers, colleagues, or anyone who happens to come across your conversation.

Success online is not powered by self-promotion.   Instead it is measured by the value of the community and the selfless act of recognizing, and connecting the great people, content, and causes around us.  When you invest in the value of your tribe and seek to improve their experiences then your influence can’t be measured.

We need you to lead.  We need you to connect.  If you think leadership is for other people, think again – leaders come in surprising packages.  As Godin says, “Leading your company, hobbyists, readers…it’s not easy, but it’s easier than you probably imagine.”

This is why we created Radiant Tribes.  We want to help you lead.  We build the digital infrastructure, help you identify your tribe, and then teach you how to use the tools of the internet to connect your tribe to you and your vision.

We are putting the finishing touches on another way for our partners and clients (the Radiant Tribes tribe) to connect.  We’re unleashing a membership based forum where our tribe members get access to our team, and more importantly they get access to one another.  They will be able to share ideas, collaborate, and have another resource to rely on as they build their marketing platform.

Stay tuned.  We think it’s going to be a fun ride.  Thanks for joining us.

What do you think?  How can we help you find and lead your tribe?

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